Finding the balance between kale and cookies.

Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes

If you’re not familiar with the delicious, yet terribly dangerous, concoction that is the Irish Car Bomb, I’m not sure if you should get acquainted. A traditional Irish Car Bomb consists of a shot glass filled with Baileys Irish Cream and Jameson that is then dropped in a nearly full glass of Guinness. The recipient must then chug the whole thing before it curdles. This usually results in a big foamy mess, but that’s part of the fun. If it wasn’t obvious yet, these drinks will really mess you up. My boyfriend has a lovely story about too many Car Bombs on his twenty-second birthday that I’m sure he would love to share with you all (sorry babe, I had to). They taste like the best mocha milkshake you’ve ever had, which makes them all the more dangerous. Luckily for you, I managed to put all of the booze, and none of the pain, in a heavenly cupcake just in time for St.Patty’s day.

I should warn you, this recipe calls for a lot of alcohol that isn’t exactly cheap. However, don’t be intimidated! When I went to my local grocery store, I was able to buy a single can of Guinness and knock off Bailey’s. Since whiskey isn’t my libation of choice, I went to the liquor store and bought a mini whiskey and saved a lot of money. But if you have a bar fully stocked with all of the necessary alcohols, then you have no excuse not to make them!

Special equipment: 1-inch round cookie cutter or an apple corer (I used the round end of a large piping tip) and a piping bag (though a plastic bag with the corner snipped off will also work)

Make the cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 24 cupcake cups with liners. Bring 1 cup stout and 1 cup butter to simmer in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add cocoa powder and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.

Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and 3/4 teaspoon salt in large bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat eggs and sour cream in another large bowl to blend. Add stout-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat just to combine. Add flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed. Using rubber spatula, fold batter until completely combined. Divide batter among cupcake liners, filling them 2/3 to 3/4 of the way. Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, rotating them once front to back if your oven bakes unevenly, about 17 minutes. Cool cupcakes on a rack completely.

Make the filling: Chop the chocolate and transfer it to a heatproof bowl. Heat the cream until simmering and pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for one minute and then stir until smooth. (If this has not sufficiently melted the chocolate, you can return it to a double-boiler to gently melt what remains. 20 seconds in the microwave, watching carefully, will also work.) Add the butter and whiskey (if you’re using it) and stir until combined.

Fill the cupcakes: Let the ganache cool until thick but still soft enough to be piped (the fridge will speed this along but you must stir it every 10 minutes). Meanwhile, using your 1-inch round cookie cutter or an apple corer, cut the centers out of the cooled cupcakes. You want to go most of the way down the cupcake but not cut through the bottom — aim for 2/3 of the way. A slim spoon or grapefruit knife will help you get the center out. Those are your “tasters”. Put the ganache into a piping bag with a wide tip and fill the holes in each cupcake to the top.

Make the frosting: Whip the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, for several minutes. You want to get it very light and fluffy. Slowly add the powdered sugar, a few tablespoons at a time.

That’s what I used to core the cupcakes for the ganache.

Enjoy these festive treats! I hope you have a fun, and safe, St. Patty’s Day!